Membership by virtue of holding a specific other position
"Ex officio" redirects here. For the English court procedure, see Ex officio oath.
An ex officio member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, or council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term ex officio[broken anchor] is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right of office'; its use dates back to the Roman Republic.
According to Robert's Rules of Order, the term denotes only how one becomes a member of a body.[1] Accordingly, the rights of an ex officio member are exactly the same as other members unless otherwise stated in regulations or bylaws.[2] It relates to the notion that the position refers to the position the ex officio holds, rather than the individual that holds the position. In some groups, ex officio members may frequently abstain from voting.
Opposite notions are dual mandate, when the same person happens to hold two offices or more, although these offices are not in themselves associated; and personal union, when two states share the same monarch.
Any ex officio membership (for example, of committees, or of the board) is as defined by the nonprofit association's bylaws or other documents of authority. For example, the bylaws quite often provide that the organization's president will be ex officio a member of all committees, except the nominating committee.
In Congress, the presiding officers and their deputies, and the majority and minority leaders, are ex officio members of all committees. The chairman on each chamber's committee on rules is the majority leader. The Senate President is the ex officio chairman of the Commission on Appointments, but can only vote on ties. In the Judicial and Bar Council, several positions are due to occupying another office.
In provincial boards, the provincial presidents of the League of Barangays (villages), Sangguniang Kabataan (youth councils) and of the Philippine Councilors League sit as ex officio board members. In city and municipal councils, the city and municipal presidents of the League of Barangays and the youth councils sit as ex officio councilors. In barangays, the youth council chairman is an ex officio member of the barangay council. The ex officio members have the same rights and privileges as the regular members of each legislature. The deputies of local chief executives (vice governors and vice mayors) are ex officio presiding officers of their respective legislatures, but can only vote when there is a tie.
Formerly, anyone holding a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom was ex officio a member of the House of Lords. This entitlement was abolished in 1999. Since then, only the Earl Marshal and the Lord Great Chamberlain (offices that are themselves hereditary) remain ex officio; another 90 hereditary peers are elected by and from among those eligible.
In most Colorado counties, the county sheriff is elected by the citizens of the county. However, in the City and County of Denver, the mayor of Denver appoints a "Manager of Safety" who oversees the Department of Safety (including the Fire, Police, and Sheriff Departments) and is the ex officio sheriff of the jurisdiction. Similarly, in the City and County of Broomfield, Colorado, near Denver, the police chief (an appointed position) also acts ex officio as the county sheriff.[11]
New York City
The Speaker of the New York City Council, and its Majority and Minority Leaders, are all ex officio members of each of its committees. Furthermore, each member of the Council is a non-voting ex officio member of each community board whose boundaries include any of the council member's constituents.[12]
References
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Robert, Henry M.
(2011).
Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised, 11th ed., p. 483–484
(RONR)